You Reap What You Sow
by Lady Panthea
Summary: When Remus Lupin returns to Hogwarts to teach in Harry's third year, McGonagall asks him to refrain from pranking. But who is he to back down from a challenge? After all, there is a Marauder legacy to uphold.


Minerva had invited Remus to join her for tea so they could catch up before the school year began. This of course led to a discussion about all the trouble Remus and the other Marauders had caused her during their school years.

"Do you remember when James and Sirius flooded the halls with bubble juice?" Minerva asked, a small smile on her face. "It took the caretaker days to clean it up, even _with_ the house elves' help. They kept insisting that they weren't the ones who did it but there was no one else there at the time. Even after two months of detention they refused to admit they were responsible."

Remus shoulders shook as he tried to keep his face neutral, "They could get themselves into quite a lot of trouble but I'm afraid that, in this particular instance, they were telling the truth."

"What ever do you mean Remus?"

"James and Sirius had no idea who caused the bubble disaster."

"Are you saying you know who was behind it?"

"Why, yes, of course."

"Who?"

"Me."

"You? You must be joking Remus. You were always the model student, I trusted you to keep them in line. There is no need for you to cover for them after all these years."

"No, no. I'm telling the truth. James and Sirius had bet that I couldn't beat them at their own game since I usually stayed in the background of our pranks. Of course, I couldn't resist so I took them up on the bet.

"I used potions and charms to make the bubbles and set them off when the two of them were nearby so they would see the effect. The only problem was that they started to panic because someone was better at pranks than they were. I couldn't tell them after that admission. I lost the bet but watching them panic for weeks was more than worth it."

"REMUS LUPIN YOU SNEAKY SNITCH!" Minerva cried. "We thought you were the perfect student and all this time you were responsible for number three on the list of worst pranks at Hogwarts."

"There's a list? And only third?" Remus mused, "I must have lost my touch. Perhaps I'll use this year to become reacquainted with the Marauder legacy. Maybe give the Weasley twins a few pointers."

"Don't you dare," McGonagall glared. "They get into enough trouble as it is. Besides, you are a teacher now. You have to set an example for your students. Especially young Harry."

"I suppose you're right Minerva. I will restrain myself from aspiring to be number one."

They continued to drink their tea, occasionally breaking to silence to discuss various things about the syllabus for the upcoming year and the student who would soon swarm the halls once more.

A few weeks into the semester, Minerva began to notice certain irregularities. Her tea would disappear or the essays she had taken to her office to mark would vanish only to be discovered on the desk in her classroom. At first, she had simply placed the blame on her own distraction. There was simply too much to track in the first week of class and the added stress of dementors at the school certainly wasn't helping. However, when she found herself with red and gold hair after taking a sip of her morning tea, she was certain of the perpetrator. Mr. Lupin, now Professor Lupin, had not been true to his word. The twins may be daring in their pranks but the one time they had tried something on Minerva in their first year, they had so severely regretted their actions that she had found herself quite free of them. Turning to him she simply rolled her eyes and asked him when he would grow up.

"Honestly Minerva?" He replied with a smile. "I doubt I ever will."

The pranks continued. One day, Minerva found her classroom infested with lightning bugs. The next, her 6th year Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff class had all been transfigured into kittens while her back was turned. The one after that, the main staircase suddenly turned into a giant slide under her feet, sending her careening into a pile of pillows that had thoughtfully been placed at the bottom.

Remus was feeling quite pleased with himself. Despite the painful memories the castle held, he had managed to keep his mind occupied by thinking up small pranks and watching the Weasley twins as they desperately tried to find the person who was beating them in their area of expertise.

He made his way to his next class, the third year snakes and lions. Harry's class. Remus wanted to be closer to his cub but forced himself to keep his distance. With Sirius free, it would not do to draw any more attention to the boy. As he walked to the classroom, he was surprised to find his students standing outside the door.

"What's going on?" He asked, he had left the door unlocked when he had gone to the kitchens during his free period.

"The door is locked Professor," Harry's friend, Miss Granger if he was not mistaken, replied.

"How strange. Oh well." With a flick of his wand, the door swung open, revealing a completely empty classroom.

Looking around in confusion, Remus and the students milled around the empty space before Remus finally glanced up and burst into laughter.

'It seems Good Old Minnie gives as good as she gets.'

Everything from the chairs to the papers and quills that had been on his desk were on the ceiling. It looked as if the entire class had been flipped upside down.

Still laughing, Remus turned to his rather shocked students.

"Well then," he said. "Since it seems that someone has taken the liberty of clearing the room, I suggest we take the opportunity to have a practical lesson."

Getting the students to place their bags against the wall before pairing them up and setting them to dueling took very little time. As Remus watched them practice, his mind turned once again to the reply Minerva his given his game.

'Well,' he mused. 'It would seem we're even. No more pranks for now.'

After all, the fact that Minerva's office was currently filled to the rafters with lilac bubbles was completely and utterly irrelevant.


End file.
